County approves $3.375 million payment to settle Levert lawsuit

View full sizePD file Angela Lowe's lawsuit charged that jail policies contributed to Levert's death and claimed negligence by doctors.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Cuyahoga County commissioners approved a $3.375 million settlement today for the family of the late Sean Levert.

The 39-year-old singer died six days after entering the County Jail in March 2008.

The Plain Dealer reported in June that his widow had settled her lawsuit against the county and the company that oversees medical care in the jail for $4 million. The settlement was one of the largest of its kind in Ohio history.

It contains no official admission of liability, "but it's clear everybody agrees that this was a tragedy and it needed to be resolved," David Malik, lead attorney for Levert's widow, Angela Lowe, told the newspaper in June.

Levert was jailed on March 24, 2008, for owing nearly $90,000 in child support to three children from previous relationships. He died after being denied his prescribed anti-anxiety medication, Xanax, the entire time he was in jail.

A coroner's report said Xanax withdrawal contributed to Levert's death.